Do You Know What I Know?

If you're taking a break from Christmas preparations and catching up on your blog-reading, hopefully this little thinker will carry you away for awhile. How many can you get right? (No cheating - don't Google!) Leave a comment and try your hand. Answers, along with a nod to whomever gets the most correct, will be shared on Saturday morning:


1. What year was How the Grinch Stole Christmas made into a television cartoon?
2. What self-sacrificing gifts were exchanged in O. Henry's The Gift of the Magi?
3. In what country did the tradition of the Christmas tree begin?
4. In A Charlie Brown Christmas, what does Linus do for the little Christmas tree?
5. When was Christmas first celebrated as a holiday?
6. In what country did the poinsettia originate and for whom is it named?
7. St. Nicholas was born in what country?
8. What are the names of the three wise men?
9. In total, how many swans are a-swimming in the Twelve Days of Christmas?
10. Where do the bells ring in the song Jingle Bells?
11. When was the first US Christmas stamp issued?
12. What were Frosty the Snowman's parting words?
13. What does Alvin the Chipmunk want for Christmas?
14. What are Scrooge and Marley's first names?
15. In the book How the Grinch Stole Christmas, what reason does the Grinch give to Cindy Lou Who for taking her Christmas tree?
16. In the song I'll Be Home for Christmas, in addition to snow and mistletoe, you should have what else?
17. What Christmas tree decorations were banned by the US Government?
18. In It's a Wonderful Life, what did Clarence earn for a successful mission?
19. Who wrote the song Rudolph the red-nosed Reindeer?
20. Who wrote the story A Christmas Carol?
21. What colonial religious group forbade the singing of Christmas carols?
22. How many years does it take to grow a six-foot Christmas tree?
23. Where did electric Christmas tree lights come from, and when?
24. Over what days are the Twelve Days of Christmas?
25. What are Frosty's eyes made of?
26. When, and in what newspaper, was Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus published?
27. What Christmas carol has the same tune as Greensleeves?
28. In what country and year did Christmas card giving originate?
29. In the song Away in a Manger, what are the cattle doing?
30. What is the literal English translation of the German word tannenbaum?
31. What does the word "advent" mean?
32. What well-known holiday city can you find in Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, New Hampshire, and Pennsylvania? (Hint: If you know me, you'll know my maternal grandfather's family hails from and still lives in the Georgia city by this name)
33. Loosely translated, what does "adeste fideles" mean?
34. In the book The Polar Express, what was found behind the tree after all the gifts had been unwrapped?
35. In 1963, why was lighting the National Christmas Tree delayed until December 22?
36. In The Night Before Christmas, what does Santa say as he pulls away in his sleigh?
37. In the Christmas Story in St. Luke's gospel, who was governor of Syria when Caesar Augustus called the census?

How many of these do you know?